Retailers generally offer categories of products associated with their core activities. For example, supermarkets provide food, health and beauty care, and household products, whereas ophthalmic stores provide eyeglasses and accessories. For each category of product, retailers also provide an item assortment to satisfy a wide range of clients by providing items of different brands, designs, sizes, colors, prices, etc.
Suppliers can have considerable influence on retailers, for example by providing financial support or even by providing display stand/cabinet (also referred to as retail unit) for arranging the products in the retailer shop. In return, the suppliers expect their products to be preferentially distributed in the retailer store and/or within the retail unit. In view of large investments by suppliers to support their brand management for having their product prominently displayed in the retailer stores, suppliers would appreciate receiving verification that their product are being displayed accordingly, and as agreed upon with the retailers.
Current techniques of monitoring item display in retailer shops are generally in the form of human inspection visits to retailer stores and there is therefore a need to improve efficiency of these techniques.